Reducing Marginal Emissions in Power Systems with Distributed Flexible AC Transmission Systems

The adverse effects of greenhouse gas emissions in electric generation have resulted in a push towards more sustainable and efficient systems. In order to address the environmental concerns that continue to arise, this study proposes a method for reducing marginal emissions of power systems by optimally allocating Distributed Flexible AC Transmission Systems (D-FACTS) in a network to reduce transmission congestion. This method optimally allocates D-FACTS modules in power systems by minimizing operating costs and global warming potential, and then the impact of D-FACTS on marginal emissions is evaluated. This method was applied to a test system that simulates the power grid of El Paso, TX, and the results show the integration of D-FACTS devices can reduce the marginal emissions in power systems by up to 16% in this system.